Nick Mallett has urged the Springboks to rediscover their confidence when they face the All Blacks again in Cape Town on Saturday.
The Boks were beaten 33-16 at Ellis Park in the opening Test of the Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry series despite enjoying periods of physical dominance, repeatedly failing to convert pressure into points largely as a result of individual errors and penalties.
It left Mallett worried about the impact the defeat could have had on the world champions’ mindset.
“Games are won with teams that are confident, with teams that feel they can go in and do a job,” Mallett said on the Talking Boks podcast.
“I’m a bit concerned about the confidence of the Springbok squad after that performance, because when you do dominate physically like that and don’t put points on the board, it is unbelievably frustrating.”
With the series now heading to Cape Town, Mallett believes the Boks need to use the week to reset mentally and approach the second Test with a clear plan.
“What’s going to be important this week is getting the mindset of our team right so that we can go there and say, it’s not the end of the world, we have got an opportunity to get a foothold in this series. This is how we’re going to do it and these are the tactics we’re going to employ, these are the players that are going to take us forward and we’re good enough to beat these guys.”
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After an Ellis Park defeat in which the All Blacks made better use of their opportunities, Mallett believes the worst possible response would be for the Boks to play with fear or uncertainty at Cape Town Stadium.
“I don’t want to see a nervy performance from the Boks,” he said.
Photo: Floris van Schouwenburg/Gallo Images
The post Mallett: ‘Nervy’ Boks must get their heads right appeared first on SA Rugby magazine.
Nick Mallett has urged the Springboks to rediscover their confidence when they face the All Blacks again in Cape Town on Saturday.
The post Mallett: ‘Nervy’ Boks must get their heads right appeared first on SA Rugby magazine. Read More
